Matthew Axelson

Matt Axelson was a Navy Seal who died along with two others in the line of fire. He and his teammates were faced with a tough decision because their mission was ambushed by a pack of goat herders. Awarded the Navy Cross by President George W. Bush. Dietz and Axelson received that award posthumously. Murphy, Axelson and Dietz all died on the mountain. "During a brief rest while scaling the mountains above a village hosting Taliban members, his team was ambushed, and by the time the attack was over, Luttrell was the only one alive."(Kiely). Marcus Luttrell was the only one left alive out of all the others who lost their lives in this battle.

Marcus felt like he was about to die when he remembered what Axe told him to tell his wife Cindy. "Tell Cindy I love her." That's what pushed Marcus to stay alive and keep fighting. Concluding Sentence: My hero Matthew Axelson was not only a brave soldier fighting in war, he was a family friend. When my family found out about the tragic accident, we were heartbroken. Matthew Axelson was certainly a courageous hero, for his courage in fighting for his country. Matthew Axelson was faced with a difficult decision, to kill the herders or to let them go and hope they don't go tell other Taliban leaders. "Petty Officer Second Class Matthew G. Axelson was in favor of killing the herders, Luttrell writes, while Petty Officer Second Class Danny P. Dietz was noncommittal. Lt. Michael Murphy wanted to release them, and Luttrell agreed with his superior officer, breaking the deadlock." (Smerconish). Matthew Axelson and three other Navy Seals were faced with a very tough decision, to kill the goat herders or to let them go. Unfortunately they made the wrong decision, they let them go. One of the herders told the Taliban and then the 4 Navy Seals were attacked. Lead-In: Because of Matt's courageousness he and 3 others were awarded the Navy Cross. Danny Dietz and Matthew Axelson were posthumously awarded the Navy Cross for action near Asadabad on June27-28, 2005."(Smerconish).

When this story was on the news me and my family all cried tears of sadness and tears of joy and thankfulness. My family and I were very proud of our "Uncle Matt" and very thankful for his service. Everyone living in America was very grateful for Matt and his service to our country. Matthew Axelson possesses courage and bravery therefore he is a true hero. Matthew Axelson was a true American hero. He died in the line of fire while fighting against over 100 Taliban fighters. Although Matt Axelson and three other Navy Seals took out way more Taliban fighters than they took out Navy Seals, his loss devastated my family and I and the rest of his family and friends.

Matthew Axelson inspires others because of his brave and heroic actions in the mountains of Iraq while fighting for his country. He is also a very kind caring and Christian man, who was a close family friend. I like to call him my uncle Matt. There are a lot of people who are considered heroes, but my hero made the ultimate sacrifice.